Top NBA-Ready Centers
As the 2011 NBA Draft approaches, HOOPSWORLD continues its position-by-position look at the most NBA ready players in a draft that is considered by most to be one of the weakest classes in memory. Over the last week, we looked at point guards, shooting guards and small forwards and today we take a look at the center position. Next week we’ll round out the series with power forwards. Here is a look at the top NBA-ready centers in the 2011 NBA Draft.
Jonas Valanciunas, Lithuania, 6-11, 240 lbs. – Just 18 years old (for a few more weeks, anyway), Jonas Valanciunas has been on the radar of NBA scouts for several years and this year emerged as one of the top professional players in Europe despite his young age and raw offensive game.
The long, skinny big man has very little polish on his game, but his tenacity and athleticism allow him to finish around the basket, be it on put-backs, drop-offs or rolls/dives to the rim. He runs the floor well, but he doesn’t have a lot of polish in terms of ball-handling.
He is already rebounding at very high rate, ranking fourth in Euroleague play in rebounds per minute (0.34) and with his freakish wingspan is blocking shots at a high rate (1.8 blocks per 40 minutes) for such a young player.
It is obvious Valanciunas will need some time to gain muscle and fill out his frail frame, but his activity level as a rebounder and shot-blocker as well as a finisher around the rim will make him a viable NBA player early in his career, regardless of his unrefined offensive game.
Bismack Biyombo, Congo, 6-9, 240 lbs. – One of the fastest risers in this year’s draft class, Bismack Biyombo exploded into the international limelight with a phenomenal performance at the 2011 Nike Hoop Summit. The long, athletic big man is oozing with potential as a defensive stopper who can rebound the basketball at a high rate and protect the rim with his jaw-dropping ability to block shots.
Although undersized at the center position, Biyombo is a tremendous athlete with a 7-7 wingspan (that is not a typo). He already has an NBA body and shouldn’t have much trouble adding muscle to an already well-developed body as he continues to mature physically.
{AUTHOR_BOX}Only 18 years old, Biyombo is already proving to be a defensive force in the Spanish ACB League (the top league in the world outside of the NBA), averaging 2.3 blocked shots and 5.1 rebounds in just 17 minutes per game for Baloncesto Fuenlabrada.
Without a refined offensive game, he relies heavily on his athleticism, offensive rebounding, cuts to the basket and finishing in transition. Much like many other young, athletic big men, Biyombo’s primary offensive move is the dunk, but with his strength and aggressiveness he seems to have more success than most.
Although he is still developing offensively, Biyombo appears ready to make an impact at the NBA level on the defensive end from day one.
Enes Kanter, Turkey, 6-10, 250 lbs. – Over the course of the past couple of years, Enes Kanter has been talked about far more than he has been seen, although when he has been on the basketball court he has shown the skill-level and competitive nature to be a solid NBA big man.
Not a particularly explosive athlete, Kanter uses his big frame extremely well, positioning his body and using his strength to create space and score the basketball. He has big, exceptionally soft hands allowing him to catch the ball in traffic before finding creases in the defense to get shots off, even against more athletic defenders.
Kanter has shown the ability to knock down shots with solid range which will serve him well in the NBA, where the two-man game (pick-and-roll/pop) is so prevalent.
Defensively, he overcomes his physical limitations by using solid footwork and positioning himself well against more athletic players. His big, thick frame makes it difficult for offensive players to get deep post position and his timing and feel for the game allow him to block some shots and rebound the basketball well for a player with just average athleticism.
With a polished offensive skill-set (especially for a player of his age), Kanter is an interesting NBA prospect and a likely top-10 pick in the 2011 NBA Draft.
Donatas Motiejunas, Lithuania, 7-0, 215 lbs. – After surprisingly opting to pull out of the 2010 NBA Draft, Donatas Motiejunas has returned to Benneton Treviso of the Italian Lega A and showing vast improvements in terms of his physical appearance and his comfort level on the basketball court.
The extremely skilled big man scored the ball extremely efficiently this season, shooting a 56 percent from the field and averaging 13.5 points in just 25.2 minutes per game. His improved strength has allowed him to mix things up down low and finish through contact at a much higher rate than last year, a nice addition to an already polished face-up game that has drawn him comparisons to NBA All-Star Pau Gasol. While that is awfully nice to say, a more accurate comparison would be Andrea Bargnani.
Motiejunas is a skilled ball-handler and passer who can create shots for himself and his teammates off the dribble and puts a tremendous amount of pressure on opposing defenses by pulling bigger defenders out to the perimeter while taking advantage of his size against smaller players down low.
Like Bargnani, Motiejunas leaves something to be desired as a rebounder and defender. Long and athletic, it seems as if the Lithuanian big man is capable of making a difference on the glass and as defender but is, at this point, somewhat disinterested in doing so.
Skilled in the mold of some of his European predecessors (Gasol, Bargnani and Dirk Nowitzki come to mind), Motiejunas is ready to provide offensive firepower off the bench at the NBA level.
Jordan Williams, Maryland, 6-10, 260 lbs. – After being largely a role player during his freshman year at Maryland, Jordan Williams emerged this year as the team’s first offensive option and responded by ranking sixth in the Atlantic Coast Conference in scoring at 16.9 points per game.
With a big, strong frame, Williams showed the ability to gain deep post position and finish in the low post with a soft touch and improving footwork around the basket. The sophomore lacks great athleticism and will have to develop a go-to move and some counter-moves in order to be an efficient scorer at the NBA level.
He has good hands which allows him to catch the ball in traffic and finish around the basket get to the free throw line at a high rate (6.9 attempts per game), although he only converted about 58 percent of his shots from the stripe.
Where Williams should immediately be able to make his mark at the NBA level is on the glass, where he has been very productive at the major college level, averaging 11.8 rebounds per game. He is a decent one-on-one defender who can block some shot due to his solid length and timing, but could have some problems defending the pick-and-roll due to average lateral quickness.
Williams’ length, frame and rebounding ability will translate immediately to the NBA and should earn him some playing time while he continues to learn the nuances of the game and develops a more diverse set of offensive skills. Expect to see him go in the early- to mid-second round of the 2011 NBA Draft.
Honorable Mention: Lucas Nogueira, Brazil, 6-11, 255 lbs.; Michael Dunigan, Oregon, 6-11, 255 lbs.; Jeremy Tyler, Tokyo Apache, 6-11, 240 lbs.; Keith Benson, Oakland, 6-11, 255 lbs.
It typically takes centers more time to adjust to the physical nature of the NBA game, so these players might take a little bit longer to make an impact at the next level. If you have any questions or comments, you can leave them in the comment section below, drop Luke Byrnes a question in his weekly chat or hit him up on Twitter. Be sure to check back next week as HOOPSWORLD looks at the top NBA ready power forwards in the 2011 NBA Draft.
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